Outrage Don’t Look Like This…
6
I ask that you take a brief journey back in time with me. I do this often. I call it “time traveling”. I usually do it alone but today I need your accompaniment. Since you’re new to this I won’t even take you back too far. Close your eyes and let’s go back to April 29, 1992. The location is Los Angeles, California. The country is anxiously awaiting the verdict on the trial of the four officers we witnessed savagely beat 26 year old, unarmed, Rodney King on camera after he led them on a high speed chase. The world saw it on camera so it’s just a matter of how much time they will get. Keep your eyes closed. The verdict is about to be read. “Not guilty”. Gasp. Black America is in a state of shock, outrage and slight disbelief. The mood is explosive, literally explosive. Blacks and Latinos begin to take their anger to the streets. There’s been a culmination of anger and frustration over repeated episodes of police brutality against people of color. Now the people have had enough. Fire, brimstone, misguided but undeniable and many argue justifiable rage unleashes itself in the form of the now infamous “Rodney King Riot” which lasted for almost an entire week. If we traveled further into the past we could revisit Chicago, Detroit, D.C., Newark and Baltimore to witness the riots that occurred as a result of racial tension, the assassination of revered leaders and repeated police brutality. The temperature gage of the people was blistering hot.
Fast forward to 2012 Trayvon, Jordan and two 17 year old,
unarmed, Black male youth were
murdered at the hands of white males (Zimbo is
white). Hundreds of rallies and profile pictures of the people donned in
hoodies, holding Skittles and iced teas ensued as a result of the first death.
The first killer was found “not guilty” of all charges. The second killer was
found guilty of murder in the 2nd degree/attempted murder but a mistrial was
declared on the 1st degree murder charge. As a result, Black America posted a
bunch of angry social media statuses, pictures and memes. Large numbers of
people exclaimed they were praying for change—still. The temperature gage of
the people is lukewarm at best. Is this what outrage looks like today?
Now that we are back to the present let me make it
emphatically clear that I am NOT advocating or encouraging rioting as a
solution. None of the above referenced cities solved their problems as a result
of rioting. However, they did capture the attention of the nation and possibly
the world. In my lifetime, via live news, I saw what outrage looked like. It
was powerful. It was deliberate. It was scary. It was sad. It was relatable. It was real.
As I study history and share it with the youth I work with I
can tell them that the people were fed up. I can tell them that no designer
shoes, pants, car or anything else superseded the angst that was felt by the
people after they witnessed these continued injustices. Fear was not even a
factor. I’m sure we can all agree that it was not the best solution for a
myriad of reasons. But dammit, we also know for a moment in time, the people
had the masses all shook up. So if that was the reaction to a grown man, large
in stature being beaten by police; why are we so much more contained at the
result of the acquittal and a subsequent bogus verdict for the killers of two
lanky, youthful teens who both lost their precious lives? We have the advantage
of hindsight. We’ve seen what worked. We’ve seen what didn’t work. We should
have thoroughly analyzed what needs tweaking.
Should we not have a “We’re not going to take this” strategy
by now? Has social media led us down a path of virtual activism? Have poignant
profile pics replaced strategy and sacrifice? Is anybody out there in 2014 Land
willing to take control of this $1 trillion dollars that Black America is
blindly pumping out annually? Dear USA, I hate how you don’t value the lives of
our youth but not quite enough to stop shopping at your malls. It’s messed up
that Jordan Davis’ murderer didn’t get convicted for his death but I really do
need these new Jordans on my feet. Is that outrage?
It’s going to take a resurgence of Black love, discipline,
unity and sacrifice to bring about the changes we claim we desire to see.
Prayer has its place but prayer without work is like a car with no gas. This is
our problem to solve. No, we didn’t create it but if you still are waiting on
the perpetrators to have a change of heart then you’re probably not cut out to
be part of this mission. We need people who are dealing in reality. We need
people who genuinely care, love and respect our culture. We need brave people.
We need warriors. We need the highly skilled and educated. We need the everyday
people. We need YOU. As I’m typing this my mother is texting me about how
organized the movement was back then. She said my grandparents used to drive to
another city to get groceries from a Black owned business and they would see
their friends and neighbors there. She said “freedom riders” used to eat and
spend the night at their house in Alabama as they were en route to their next
destination. She said the people vowed that if anyone lost their jobs due to
the movement, the community would help as best they could. She said that didn’t
happen, fortunately. Today, I look at my environment and wonder where the fire
went. Word to Ms. Hill. Trayvon Martin and Jordan Davis are only two of many of
our slain youth. How many more have to be killed before we get angry enough to
take action? Who’s ready to get the fire blazing again?
I’m in a rather somber mood at the moment but I will try to
end this in an upbeat fashion. Close your eyes again please. I’m going to do
something I’ve never done before. I’m going to time travel to the future, the
near future. Ok we’re there now. Wow. I see that Black people have come up with
a plan on how to spend our money strategically. We’ve identified companies and
businesses that we no longer support. We are pooling our money together ($1
trillion) and building up businesses and infrastructure that will allow us to
sustain ourselves. We have schools in which true and accurate history is taught
to our youth. We’re not waiting for permission. We’re raising a generation of
youth who are fully aware and proud of who they are. This new sense of pride
and self-worth has caused us to truly protect what we always claimed we loved.
I see a look of pride and connectedness as the people inconveniently go out of
their way to secure a better life for future generations. The fire is roaring
and the thermometer reads HOT. The future is bright. Let’s travel backwards for
a moment. I see that a Brother funneled his 2014 outrage into starting a
mentoring program. He linked up with a Sister with a youth dance program. They
linked up with an elder who owned some land. They all answered the call of the
organization that spearheaded the boycott. Wait, I see this all began when you,
me, him and her decided to reach out to other like minds and make this happen.
I see what 21st Century outrage looks like and I like it! Who’s willing to make
the vision a reality?
**If we don’t come up
with a plan and the violence doesn’t stop eventually the people will take it
back to the streets…
